China’s Didi Chuxing discloses US$585m loss in first half amid safety crisis as founder tells staff ‘we’re not evil’
The voluntary disclosure offers a rare glimpse into the financial state of the privately held firm as it tries to shore up public confidence following the deaths of two female passengers
Didi Chuxing, China’s largest ride-hailing platform, has not made a profit in the six years since its founding and recorded a net loss of 4 billion yuan (US$585 million) in the first half of the year, Didi founder and chief executive Cheng Wei disclosed in a letter to employees on Friday.
The voluntary disclosure offers a rare glimpse into the financial state of the privately held firm as it tries to shore up public confidence following the alleged rape and murder of a female passenger by one of its drivers, the second in three months.
“Didi is by no means an evil company, and would never prioritise generating profit above anything else,” Cheng said in the letter. “We have not been profitable over the past six years.” The letter, leaked to local Chinese media and published on the Tencent News website, was confirmed as authentic by a Didi spokesperson.
The Beijing-based company’s margin is only 1.6 per cent of the gross merchandise volume, while discounts and subsidies for passengers and drivers amounted to 11.7 billion yuan in the first half of the year, according to Cheng.
“As a platform that handles hundreds of millions of rides we will continue to operate on a low margin and spend more in improving safety and service experience,” the chief executive said.